As Barneys rushes to liquidate its assets, the fate of its employees is uncertain. And they are not happy about it.
According to the retailer’s bankruptcy filing, despite $4 million in severance pay obligations, the company only has $2 million available to pay its employees, the New York Times reported. Now, staffers say they have experienced a deterioration in the working conditions at the stores and missed paychecks blamed on a “cyber incident,” according to the newspaper.
The New York luxury fashion retailer was recently sold in two parts for $270 million to brand merchandiser Authentic Brands Group and B. Riley.
Brick-and-mortar retail has seen a string of store closures and bankruptcies. Barneys, for decades a hallmark of New York’s once-thriving luxury retail scene, filed for bankruptcy in August of last year after a huge rent increase at its flagship store. Daniella Vitale, the company’s chief executive officer, jumped ship soon after to become chief brand officer of jewelry retailer Tiffany & Company, after earning $1.3 million in compensation between August 2018 and July 2019. [NYT] — Georgia Kromrei